Speed-changing and transmission gearing.



D. P. COLLINS. v SPEED CHANGING AND TRANSMISSION GEARING.

APPLICATION r'ILED MAY 31.1911.

1,038,084. Patented July 23, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

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SPEED CHANGING AND TRANSMISSION GEARING.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 31,1911. v

Patented July 23; 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

NVENOR ,3W

/1 Harney WIM/'55555 D. P. COLLINS.

SPEED CHANGING AND TRANSMISSIONGEARING.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 31,1911.

Patented July 23, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEroE.

DENNIS P. COLLINS, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO COLLINS AXLE' MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

SPEED-CHANGING AND TRANSMISSION GEARING.

. specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 23, 1912.

Application led May 31, 1911. Serial N o. 630,495.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known t-hat I, VDENNIS P. COLLINS, of Pittsburgh, in thecounty of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Speed-Changing and Transmission Gearing; and I do hereby declarel the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art towhich it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in speed changing and transmission gearing, and more particularly to improvements on the construction 'disclosed in my pending application No. 618,47 8 filed April 1st, 1911, the object of the present invention being to provide means whereby the entire gearing may be assembled and adjusted, and inserted bodily into the housing and be removed therefrom, without withdrawing or otlrerwise moving the rear axle sect-ions.

A further object isto provide improved means for assembling and mounting the drive pinions, independently of the gears.

With these and other objects in view, my inventio-n consists in the parts and combinations of parts as will be more fully described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation of the gear and axle housing, the gear casing being shown in rear elevation; Fig. 2 is a view in horizontal section through the gear casing and gears; Fig. 3

is a view in side elevation of one section of the gear casing; Fig. 'f4 is a section on the line :v'of' Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a view insection of the gear case carrier and housing and Fig. 6is a perspective view of the cage for the pinion ball bearing.

i 1 represents the rear axle sleeve covering and embracing the inner ends of two sections 2 of the rear axle. This sleeve 1 is mounted at its ends in the ball bearings 3 carried by the two part cast metal casing and frame 4 and 4a. This combined casing and frame forms the housing and support for the gears, and is divided longitudinally in line with the drive shaft, as shown in Fig. 1, and are secured together by bolts passing through ears 5 integral with the sect-ions 4 and 4a., suitable shims being interposed between the meeting edges-of the two sections of the casing, if necessary to secure the pro-per adjustment .of the gearing and pinvions. Each. section 4 and 4 of the gear case is provided at each end with a semicylindrical bearing 6 for the reception of the cylindrical ends of the ball bearing cage 7,'and each 1s provided centrallyl at its side with a cylindrical bearing 8 for the rings 9 carrying the ball bearing 3, the said rings b eing held in place by the bearing adjusting -rmg 10 and the nut 11. Each section 4 and reverse gears 15 and 16, a bronze bushing 1'( being interposed between each wheel hub and its bearing, and preferably secured to the gear. The gear hubs, as shown in Fig. 2, are open at theircenters, and are-provided with inwardly projecting teeth 18 which are adapted to be engaged "by the teeth 19' of the clutch members 20 and 20a mounted to slide on the sleeve 1, but keyed to the latter. y

7 is a ball bearing cage, 'which comprises four rings or bearings 21-21a-21b-21, connected by integral yokes 22-22a the latter being curved as shown so as to embrace the enlarged center of the sleeve 1. The end bearings 21 and 21, of this cage rests within the cylindrical bearings 6 at the rear and front ends of the gear casing 4f4a, as shown in Fig. 2, and together with the intermediate rings or bearings 21 and 2 1b carrying the ball bearings 23 in which the main and secondary drive shafts are mo-unted. Main drive shaft 24 is provided with a pinion 24a meshing with slow speed gear 15 and .with anA annular cylindrical bearing 4C, which carry respectively the slow speed and the reverse'gear 16, and with a larger pinlhub of this high speed gear is also provided with clutch teeth adapted to be engaged by the teeth of movable clutch member 200, the latter being located in a position to engage either-hub, or rest in a neutral position betweenboth without engaging either. y

The rear axle sleeve l is enlarged at its center, as shown in Fig. 2, to receive the differential gears 27 and 27, the former of which are mounted on the shafts 27", carried by the sleeve 1, and the latter secured respectively to the abuttingends of the two sections 2 of the rear axle, and operate in the usual and well known manner. The hubs of clutch members 20 and 20l are keyed to sleeve l, so as to impart rotary motion thereto, the clutch member 20 being adapted to loch either the high or low speed gears to the sleeve 1, and the clutch member 2O adapted to lock t-he reverse gear to the sleeve. The clutches are provided with shifting means, 28, both of which are preferably actuated by a single lever, but which` may be operated by any approved means.

The drive pinion 24a on main drive shaft meshes with the slow speed and reverseI gears and rotates both, but as only one can be clutched to the sleeve at a time, motion from the drive shaft will beimparted to the I sleeve, and from the latter to the rear axle section through the gear that is clutched to the sleeve. Drive pinion 219 meshes with the high speed gear and drives same. As previously explained, clutch member 20a, is designed to connect both high and low speed gears to the sleeve, but not both at the same time, and when in the position shown in Fig. 2, both gears are disconnected from the sleeve.

As shown in Fig. l each axle section 2 is provided at its outer end with a iixed coupling member` 30 having teethy adapted to interlock with similar teeth on the movable coupling member 30E. Each movable member of the coupling is mounted to slide on the angular ends 2b of the outer section 2a of the axle, and is secured in place by the tapered pins 3l driven through the sleeve of the movable member of the coupling and through the axle sections 2a. By removing the pins, and sliding thel movable sections of the couplings outwardly so Vas to disconincense nect the outer sections 2a of the axles from the inner sections 2, the entire gearing including the axle section 2, will be free to be withdrawn without disturbing the outer sections 21L of the axles.v By this construction the drive wheels ofthe vehicle may be keyed or otherwise fixed to the axles 2, thus permitting all the gearing to' beremoved without disturbing the drive wheels or the axle sections connected to the latter. rlvhe casing and rear axle are covered by a pressed steel housing 3l" having an opening at the rear, closed by a cap 31a. The front section of this housing is provided with an inwardly projecting bearing 32 to receive and support thefront cylindrical end of the gear casing 4 and 4a while the removable cap has a cylindrical seat 33 to receive and support the rear end of said casing, so that when the parts are assembled, the gear' casing will be supported at its front and rear ends, and is detachably secured intermediate its ends to the front section of the-housd ing by bolts as before explained. The main and secondary drive shafts with their pinions thereon are assembled in the cage 7 and the sleeve with its clutch members, axle sections and differential gearing and the forward drive and reverse gears are then assembled and inclosed within the casing d--li and after the parts have been properly adjusted, the casing with the partstion of the casing, while the reverse speed gear is mounted in a similar bearing in the other section of the casing, while the high speed gear is mounted in and carried by the hub of the low speed gear. This casing also carries the bearings for the axle sleeve and supports the ends of the cage, so that the entire mechanism is supported in the casing which as shown in Fig. l may be open at the top and bottom so as to permit the gears to project, thus decreasing the height of the housing.

lt is evident that many slight changes might be resorted. to in the relative arrangement of parts shown and described without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. Hence l would have it understood that l do not wish to conline myself I combination with a housing, a drive shaft,

an axle or shaft to be driven, a pinion on to the driven shaft or axle, the wholey of said casing with its inclosed gears and pinio'ns being removable from. the housing. t

2. In apparatus' of the class described, the combination with a housing, a drive shaft, an axle orshaft to be driven, pinions on the drive shaft, a two part casing inclosing said pinions, high and low speed transmission g'ears in one section of the casing the low speed gear having its bearing formed on one section of the casing, and a reverse geail mounted in a bearing on the other section of the casing, the said low speed drive and reverse gears meshing with one pinion on the drive shaft, and the high speed drive gear withl the other pinion on thel drive shaft, the whole of said casing and its inclosing gearing beingv removable from' the housing.

3. In apparatus of the class described, a drive shaft, an axle or shaft to be driven, a pair of pinions of different size connected with the drive shaft, a 4casing divided lon` gitudinally into two-sections, high, low and reverse speed gears mounted in said casing, the low speed and reverse gears meshing with one pinion on the drive shaft and the high speed gear meshing with the other pinion, and clutch members slidably mountedl on the driven shaft and engaging the gears which are of annular form, the whole of said gear casing with the gears, clutches, pinions and driving shaft being removable bodily.

4. In combination in apparatus. of the class described, a drive shaft, a driveny shaft or axle, a pair of pinions on the drive shaft, a casing made up oftwo sections divided in the direction of length of the drive shaft, a gear having its bearing in one section of the casing and meshing with one of said pinions, a gear meshing with the other pinion, said last mentioned gear having bearing within the hub of the first mentioned gear and means for connecting either gear with the driven shaft or axle.

5. In combination in apparatus of the class described, a two part casing divided in the direction of length of the drive shaft', aA

cage within said casing, main and secondary drive shafts mounted in the cage, pinions on said shafts, gears within the casing outside of the cage and meshing with the pinions on the drive shafts, a driven shaft or axle and means for connecting either gear with the driven shaft or axle.

6. In combination in apparatus of lthe class described, a drive shaft, a driven shaft or axle composed of two members, difieren;

tialgearing at the meeting ends ofv the 'two members, a casing for said diiferentialgeam mg surrounding the shaft sections, pinions connected with the `drive`sl1`aft, annular gears meshing therewith and on each side of the differential gearing, clut'cl'l means 'between the differential casing and said'gears,

and a gear casing made up of two parts divided inthe direction of the length of :the drive shaft, saidgears, differential casingand drive shaft being supported by and movable with the two part casing. f

`7. In combination in apparat-us of .the class described, av drive shaft, a' driven shaft or axle, change speed 'gearing between the drive and driven shafts, a two part casing embracing and supporting said gearing and a housing vhaving a removable cap, said casing with itsI gearing being removable through the opening covered by said removable cap.l

8. In combination in apparatus of the classdescribed, a drive shaft, a driven shaft or axle, gearing between same, a housing, a two part casing detachably vsecured to and within said housing and inclosing'the gear.- ing, and a cage supported -by the housing and having bearings for the drive shaft, the said casing and its contained parts being removable as a whole through arr opening in the housing.

9. In combination in apparatus of the Vclass described, a drive shaft, a drivenfshaft or axle, a two part casing, a cage within and supported by said casing. and carrying the bearings for the drive shaft, a housingin which the casing is secured,-the saidvhousling having an openingv through which the casing is inserted and removed, gearing within-the casing and at vthe sides of the cage for connecting the'driving and driven shaft or axle and means for connecting eithergear'with the driven shaft or axle.

10. In combination a drive shaft, a .two part driven shaft, differential gearing connecting the two parts of the said ldriven shaft, a. casing for the differential gearing,

a cage embracing the casing for the' differential gearing and carrying the drive shaft, drive pinion on said shaft, a main casing carrying said cage, gearing within said main casing and meshing with the drive pinions, and a housing within which the main casing is secured,"the said housing having an opening through which the main casing and its y contained drawn.

11. The combination of an axle composed of two outer and two inner sections, differential gearing connecting the two inner secparts may be inserted and withtions, couplings connecting the outer ends of the two inner sections to the outer sections of the axle, a drive shait, gearing connecting said drive shaft anol the two inner sections of the axle, a casing Carrying vsaiol (lrive shaft, gearing vand two inner sections of the axle, and a housing to which said Casing is removably secured, Jche said housing having an opening for the passage of thecasing and its Contained parts.

12. The combination of a two part axle, differential gearing connecting same, a cage embracing the. dierential gearing, main and supplemental drive shafts mounted in said cage, a drive pinion on each drive shaft, a casing inclosing all of said parts, gears with- Losanna in the casing anol meshing with the pinions on the drive Shafts, and a housing in which the casing is cletaohably secured, the saifl housing having an opening for the insertion and removal of the casing and its contained parte.

ln testimony whereof, llhave signed this specification in the presence ofl two subscribing' witnesses.

minne r.- commen Witnesses E.. L, KELLY, Roi NYE. 

